Together now
by Caraanime
Summary: Alice and Amelia have been acquaintances since they were freshman. However, the summer before senior year they start hanging out through a mutual friend. As they quickly become close and learn more about each other, Amelia begins to think they are destined to be lovers. Will the complications of their friendship and their pasts keep them apart? Can Amelia tell Alice how she feels?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"Hello?"

"Bonjour! guess who it is~!"

"Haha, it's Francis, isn't it?" she laughed into her phone. "Why'd ya call me dude?"

"I wanted to remind you that my graduation party is this Saturday, since you are so forgetful!"

"Oh yeah of course!" she said enthusiastically. " I can't wait! It's gonna be so fun!"

"Aha! not really..." he said. "It is just going to be you, me, and a few other friends, and then my family, boo hiss." He whined into her ear.

"Why do you even hate your family? They are so nice!" she replied. Amelia had met her flaming friend's parents once or twice and they seemed like lovely people.

"Because zey are all so stupid and annoying! All zey are good for is eating my food! duh!" he said. His french accent seemed to reveal itself whenever he got emotional.

"Alright, alright. I get it. So... what other friends are coming?" she hoped she would have someone to talk to other than him. She always got nervous about parties where she only knew one or two people, fearing she would be left to herself.

"Well lets see 'ere...Michelle is coming! And... unfortunately, Natalia is coming..."

Amelia laughed into the phone, hearing the tremble of fear as he spoke her name. Despite being terrified of her, he still kept her around. Mostly for gossip.

"And Alice! Alice Kirkland is coming." he said.

"Oh good..." she sighed with relief. At least she would have a few other girls to talk to.

"I've never hung out with Alice outside of school but I talk to her all the time!"

"Oh really! She is my best friend! You two will get along great!"

"I hope so..." if things went well at the party, the three of them might even become close friends. She just had to hope she'd have a good day...

"Amelia, Don't sound so down! You two will love each other!"

"Haha, you make it sound like we have never met before..." she talks to Alice all the time. In fact, she is in her one (and only) favorite class... Honors American History! America, Fuck yeah!

"Whatever!" he sighed. "Ill see you then okay? Don't forget to get me a present!" She could practically see him make puppy face as he said it.

"Humph! don't you worry, I won't forget. Bye!" she hung up the phone, then went over to her closet. _what should I wear? _Looking at her dresses, she realized she didn't have much... "Eh, I'll just wear jeans and a nice shirt..."

"Oh no you won't!" said a voice behind her.

"Oh. Hey mom." she said "why can't I just wear that?"

"Because I want you to wear a dress. You could become good friends with these people!"

Amelia sighed the sigh of a thousand sighs. Her mother harping on the fact that she didn't have many friends wasn't helpful or comforting. "Fine I'll wear one. Can we get a new one though?"

"Yes, I'll give you some money and you can go to Macy's. But before you go, can you please fix your hair?"

_Fuck off... _she thought to herself. She gave her mother an exasperated look, then took the money. She went downstairs and got her keys. "Road trip!" she smiled to herself. A nice car ride is just what she needed.

She climbed into her truck and pushed in the keys. Hearing her engine purr always filled her with a jolt of joy. "I love my BABY!" she exclaimed, slapping the dashboard. Blasting the country station on high, she sped off towards Macy's.

She arrived, parking in the spot furthest from the door (gotta get that exercise) and walked in. "Lets see here..." she tilted her head to the side, looking at the directory. "I guess ill start in the juniors department..."

"Urgggghhhh... I'm not sure if this is gonna work out..." she said as she tried to squeeze herself into another size 16. She sighed, then gave up trying to get the zipper up. "Maybe I'll look in women's..."

She took the brown, printed, V-neck, knee length dress off the rack. "Too matronly..." she decided, and put it right back. Depressed now, she decided to take a break from dress shopping and headed into the main part of the mall for some cinnamon pretzels. She then sat down, and after clearing her head with some good old fashioned greasy and sweet, weighed her options. Looking at the stores around her, she realized there probably wasn't a single place here that could give her a well fitted dress. (That wasn't made for someone 30)

"You know what...forget mom... Ill just buy a really dressy shirt. Ill wear it with some dark jeans."

Two days later, as she put the outfit together for wear, she began to feel a familiar queasiness in the middle of her stomach. "I guess I should wear some makeup..." she went to her dresser, and from the trinkets scattered around it was able to bring together what she needed. The foundation was a little off for her skin color, and the eyeliner wasn't waterproof. It wasn't much, but at least it made her feel better.

"Okay, okay." she said to herself in the mirror of her bathroom. "No big deal. Nice little party, maybe some video games after. No sweat. No pressure. Be yourself." Grabbing her keys, she looked back into a mirror one last time, not being completely satisfied with what she saw. Deciding trying to fix herself would make it worse, she put it out of her mind and left the house without looking back.

"Where the hell should I park...?" Amelia asked herself as she pulled up to Francis' house. There were cars everywhere, blocking the sides of the street. "I'll just go a block over..." She drove up and found a spot only a block down from the house. Checking the house number on her phone again, she walked up to the door, put together her best smile and her best emotions, and rang the bell.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Hello!" said the face on the other side. "Are you one of Francis' friends?"

"Yes!" she smiled, happy she had located the correct house.

"Oh good! He and everyone else are in the back." the kind woman, Francis' mother, beamed at her.

"Thank you!" she said as she was ushered into the house. "It's nice to see you again!" she chimed, Extending her hand to shake Mrs. Bonnefoy's.

"It's very nice to see you too dear!" she said warmly. "The bathroom is just down that hall, cups are in the kitchen! Have fun!"

She then walked away, leaving Amelia to find the entrance to the back. _Follow the voices I guess!_ she thought, then made her way to the backyard. It was a small, but comfortable size with a deck. A tent on the grass contained most of the tables, where she saw many blonde, high-end looking strangers. _Probably his family._ Her friend, however, was sitting at the only table on the deck, an empty seat next to him. She sat down without a word.

"Who-*gasp* AMELIA~!" he squealed, hugging her and eagerly accepting his card. "You 'ave no Idea how glad I am zat you are 'ere..." he whispered into her ear.

"Haha! Family stressing you out?"

"Oh you have NO idea."

She smiled at the comment, And as Francis described all the horrors of being the center of attention, (of people who love you, at that) she took the time to look around (and pay no attention to him at all.) She noted that there was no one else there their age, besides two uninterested looking girls. They were sitting in the shade, as far away from others as possible, heads buried in their phones.

_I_ _hope I don't have to talk to them.._. Amelia thought to herself. She interrupted Francis' rant. "Hey, who are those girls sitting in the corner?"

"Oh, those are my cousins, Francesca and Anastasia..." you could practically see and hear his eyes roll at their names, so she assumed he didn't like them either. _Yes! I'm safe!_

Just then Francis got a call from Michelle. They talked for a bit and Francis sounded disappointed, then ended the call.

"She cannot come!"

"Really? Why not?" _That really sucks,_ she thought. _Francis was really excited about her coming... _

"Her mother cannot drive her anymore! Something came up...Oh well! We still have everyone else, if they ever show up..."

"Yeah. hey, you want to wait inside f-"

"YES." he said, hastily getting up from his chair and heading straight for the house. She rolled her eyes and followed him inside. They sat on the couch after getting some food. After 20 or so minutes they both started to get impatient. Amelia was about to suggest calling them when they saw Alice walking up to the front door. She wore a purple party dress, her hair in low pigtails. Francis opened the door and went to give her a hug. Amelia walked up behind him and waited for her turn to say hi.

Alice peeked around Francis' head and smiled.

"Hello there!" she said. She was somewhat shy, but warm.

"Hi!" Amelia beamed at her. "Why don't we all go outside now. There is no point waiting for Natalia in here."

"Natalia isn't here yet?" she asked, looking very relieved.

"She isn't yet, and Michelle is not coming at all!" Francis told her as they began to walk to the backyard.

"Oh, that's too bad." Alice said politely.

"You should eat!" Amelia turned to her as they passed the kitchen. "We ate already, so you should eat now."

"Oh, I'm not hungry, it's fine." Alice said, looking at the food and turning back to Amelia. "Aww, are you sure?" she pouted. For some reason she felt she should encourage her to eat.

"Yes, you must eat something!" Francis agreed.

"Well, I guess I'll have something small..." she went into the kitchen to grab some food.

"We'll be outside!" Amelia yelled back at her before leaving the house, Francis following behind. They sat at the same table on the deck. Amelia looked around but turned back to the house as Alice came out and sat next to her. _awww, she sat next to me!_ she smiled at her, and she in turn smiled back. The three of them made small talk for a minute or two before the conversation died down. There was awkward silence for a moment.

"Hey!" Amelia suddenly shouted, startling her companions. "Let's go walk around. I wanna meet your family!"

"Me too!" Alice agreed. "You aren't being a very good host, per usual Francis." She sighed at him disapprovingly.

"OI! It's not my job! I didn't even want to have a party with them anyway!"

"Oh well!" Amelia said to him, grabbing his arm and pulling him out of the chair. "You're here, and you're gonna show us around!" he groaned, but let himself be dragged by the stronger (and heavier) girl, Alice following closely behind. She went down to the tent and the rest of the tables, and felt the eyes upon her as she got close. She froze, then elbowed Francis. "Ow! Oh alright... family, meet friends; friends, family." most of them turned away without response.

_What asses!_ she thought to herself. Just then, a middle aged looking lady waved at them to come join her. They sat down next to her and what looked like her husband. "Amelia..Alice. This is my Aunt Sue...and Uncle Joe."

"Hola!" Amelia said, (practicing her flawless French) and went to shake hands with them. Alice waved a hello and they all sat down. Once they all settled in they actually had a good time talking together. Jokes and stories were told, and despite the awkwardness in the beginning it felt now as if they had all known each other for years. They finally remembered that Natalia was supposed to be there; and Francis, after much convincing from Amelia and Alice, went to go call her, leaving the two girls alone.

"This is so fun." Amelia chirped, taking a sip of her drink.

"It is!" Alice agreed, sipping her drink also. "As much as he complains about them, his family is nice!"

"I know, right? They way he talks about them you'd expect the mob or something." she laughed. They smiled at each other for a few seconds, then Amelia looked around. "Hey, I think Francis went inside... wanna go see what he's doing?"

"Sure!"

The two got up, and Amelia took the opportunity to get a good look at Alice as they walked. _She's actually really pretty,_ she noticed. Nice hair, nice skin, nice legs, nice everything; Alice was one of the smallest girls in the grade. She was tall, almost the same height as Amelia; but she had a very thin waist. _I wish I could look like that..._ she thought, but decided to bury the feeling. They reached the inside and began looking around. Alice peeked down the hallway and into the kitchen but he wasn't there.

"Francis?" Amelia called to him. No answer.

"Wanna wait here?" she pointed to the couch, and they sat down.

"So Alice, how's life?" Amelia asked her.

"It's okay, I guess..." she said nonchalantly.

"Really? Why just okay?" Amelia asked, unassuming.

"Well... I don't know. Forget it."

"Are you sure? You can tell me if something's up." she said, now curious because of Alice's strange reply.

Alice looked at her and considered her for a moment. She seemed to be opening her mouth to speak when Francis came into the room.

"There you two are! I've been looking for you!"

"We've been looking for you!" Amelia said. "Did you hear from Natalia?"

"Yes, you will not believe zis!" Francis began to tell his story, Amelia, however, wasn't really paying attention.

_Just what was she about to tell me?_ she thought.

"Okay! so blah blah blah Natalia blah blah blah psycho bitch blah blah blah blah Walmart blah..."

She couldn't shake the feeling that she just missed something important.

"Blah blah blah clothes blah blah angry dad blah blah blah gas.."

_ She has always struck me as a normal, happy person... maybe there is more to her than i thought. I wonder if she is like me... lonely. She looked kinda unsettled when I asked her about it..._

"Blah blah fat mother blah blah blah ghetto car blah blah.."

_You know what? It's probably usual teen stuff. But then why do I feel like its more? I-"_

"-**_cake_** blah blah.."

"CAKE!?" she said, leaping up from her seat.

"Cake!" said Mrs Bonnefoy, who was suddenly standing in the doorway.

"Get over here, Francis! It's cake time!"

"Oh yay..." he said monotone, then trudged over to get take pictures with the cake.

Amelia was once again alone with Alice. But she felt it wasn't a good time to pry. Instead, she looked over at her.

"Wanna go watch him be miserable?"

"Haha, okay." Alice said, the seriousness from before buried under a smile. As they watched him take countless (unnecessary) pictures with the pastry, she noticed the two cousins from before standing next to them.

Before she could look away, One of them looked up to see her staring. Embarrassed, she tried to cover it with a "hi!" However, she got such a nasty look, she decided not to. Shrinking back, she decided to walk away from the rest of the party. Alice noticed and followed her.

_Why am I so upset because of some bitch?_ she thought to herself, walking to the bathroom.

_ I was just so happy about cake. Why am I letting a look make me feel so upset?_

_**"Because I should be. They are all dressed nice, all put together, all calm, all of them would never want me ar-"**_

"Hey! Are you okay?" Alice asked, bringing Amelia out of her thoughts.

"Oh, I'm fine... its just, that girl just gave me a nasty look..."

"Oh what? You mean the blonde? She gave me one too before!"

"What a bitch..."

"Wait, were you crying?"

"What!? No..." she said, wiping the water out of her eyes.

Alice looked like she was gonna say something, but decided not to.

"Alright then. Do you want to be alone?"

"No, no I'm fine. Lets go get into one of those pictures."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Say cheese!"

"CHEESE!" Amelia screamed through her smile, making Francis snort.

"Perfect!" Said Mrs. Bonnefoy. "I think we are done with pictures. Lets cut the cake!"

"Yessss!" Amelia said, and noticing Alice looking at her, sent her a wink.

"You're pretty...enthusiastic, aren't you?" She said trying to hold back a smile.

"The enthusiastic-est!" Amelia beamed back at her. She gleefully accepted a piece of cake from Mrs. Bonnefoy, but handed it to Alice instead.

"Now, don't make me convince you this time!"

"Haha, alright, I'll eat it." She said.

"Let's go eat it on the couch!" Amelia enthused, now used to the comfy cushion.

"Me also!" Said Francis.

The trio sat down on the couch, and happily ate the cake. In her cake induced glee, Amelia blurted out: "Happy Birthday Francis!"

Suddenly, her companions started choking on their cake, and Alice burst out laughing. She began to laugh too. _Dude, her laugh is so weird, it's hilarious! _She thought. Alice's laugh was very quirky. It sort of sounded like someone who was very happy, but lost all control of their vocal chords and was trying to sing a song. Yeah... something like that. But it made Amelia happy to see her laugh so hard.

"Tu es tellement stupide." Francis scoffed at her.

"Oops!" She responded, then continued to guzzle down the cake.

The rest of the party went as planned. Natalia never showed up, (thank god) the family and friends all took group pictures, (a lot of them) and then everyone left. Except, of course, the two girls, who went Ito Francis' basement to play games.

"One more round!" Francis whined as Alice politely tried quite hard to leave.

"No, I'm sorry, I really have to get home..." She said for the thousandth time.

"Awww come on. Why do you have to go home?" Amelia joined the conversation. She also wished for Alice to stay a little bit longer, hoping they would get another chance to talk alone.

"Amelia, I have to leave eventually!"

"Well yeah, but..." She sighed, unable to come up with reasons to make her stay longer. "Okay... Can I get your number?"

"Oh, um Sure!" Alice said, then walked back over to her. They exchanged phone numbers, and Alice turned to Francis. "Thank you for inviting me. I'll see you soon." she turned to Amelia. "I'll see you soon too?"

"Of course!" She smiled at her. "Now get home safe you crazy kid!"

Alice rolled her eyes but smiled at the comment. After one last goodbye, she walked up to the first floor and let herself out of the house.

After ten more rounds of Left 4 lunch 2, Amelia was getting bored.

"I'm so sick of zombies..." She groaned. "And I'm really tired, I think I'm gonna go home."

"Okay." Francis yawned. He got up from his chair and gave her a hug. They walked upstairs, she said goodbye to Mrs. Bonnefoy, took some wrapped up food from the kitchen, got her shoes and said goodbye. "I'll text you!" She promised him. "We will hang out soon!" He chimed back. She walked out the front door, across his lawn and onto the pavement. The cold hit her and she shivered. It was very chilly for a summer night.

_I better get home soon or mom will have a cow... _She thought. _I had so much fun today. I think things went well... hopefully they feel the same way._

She finally reached her car, climbed into the drivers seat and started the engine. Setting the heat on high, she rolled off into the night.

Once home, she immediately ran upstairs, peeled off her clothes and hopped into bed. She went to put her phone in its charger for the night and noticed she had a new text message from Alice.

_I'll read it tomorrow_... She thought, then put it down and fell asleep almost immediately.

The next day Amelia woke up earlier than usual. She tried to fall back asleep but couldn't, so she climbed out of bed and went downstairs to make some breakfast. Her socked feet felt cold on the tile floor when she reached the bottom of the stairs. It was very chilly downstairs in the mornings. Grabbing a sweatshirt from the hall closet, she continued into the kitchen. She flipped on the lights, then went over to the fridge and opened it. She realized her family was gone, the house dead silent; but she didn't question it. It wasn't unusual for her to wake up to an empty house. _What day of the week is it? _She wondered, and went back upsairs to check her phone. She then noticed the text she hadn't read last night.

**_Hey this is Alice._**

She decided to respond to it later, since it was pretty early in the morning (for Amelia, anyway.) She grabbed her phone and went back down into the kitchen. She closed the refrigerator door and opened a cupboard instead. Finding some cereal, she went back to the fridge and got milk. She poured herself a bowl, went into the living room, and sat in front of the TV. After about an hour of watching _Adventure Time_ she started to get bored. _Maybe Alice isn't busy!_ She hoped, and picked up her phone to text her.

**_Hey Alice :) what's up?_**

Not getting an immediate response, she put the phone down and went up to her room to get dressed. She put on yoga pants and a T-shirt. She heard her phone chime from the living room, so she ran downstairs to look. Picking up her phone, she saw the text was from Alice.

**_Hi. Nothing much. What about you?_**

She pressed the respond button and started typing.

**_same. :( Today is probably going to be a sit and watch TV day._**

Alice responded immediately.

**_oh that sounds nice actually. I need a day like that._**

**_oh really? R u like always busy?_**

**_sort of. I never really get to relax at my house.._**

Amelia's eyebrows raised at her response. _This could be my chance to find out what she was gonna tell me yesterday._

**_really? Why?_**

**_my parents never leave me alone. They are always on my case about something._**

**_:( that sucks. My parents are like that too, sometimes. Why don't you just like, leave your house or something?_**

**_I can't, really. They always ask me where I'm going and if they dont think I have a good reason they won't let me leave._**

_What can I say to that?_ Amelia pondered for a minute, hoping to find a way to make Alice feel comfortable saying more without pressuring her.

**_thats not very nice! Well, if you can get out you could always come hang at my place. You are definitely welcome! and im always here to talk._**

**_oh I can't just use you to get away from them, that would be so rude..._**

**_what? No way! It's fine, really. Besides, we will hang out soon anyway, right? What's the diff?_**

**_yeah, I guess that's true lol. Thanks Amelia. :0)_**

**_Np :D anyway, would you want to hang this week maybe?_**

**_perhaps, but I have to check if I'm free. I'll let you know._**

**_okay! :D_**

Amelia put her phone down, figuring that was the end of the Conversation. _Well now I know there is something going on._ She began to wonder if maybe she shouldn't want to know, that maybe she shouldn't pry, but let the concern fade. If they were going to be friends, there was nothing wrong with wanting to know more about her.

With that, she decided that maybe she should go out today.


End file.
